One Cut of the Dead
| One Cut of the Dead | |
|---|---|
Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Shin'ichirō Ueda |
| Screenplay by | Shin'ichirō Ueda |
| Based on | Ghost in the Box! by Ryoichi Wada |
| Produced by | Koji Ichihashi |
| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Tsuyoshi Sone |
| Edited by | Shin'ichirō Ueda |
| Music by |
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Production company | Enbu Seminar |
| Distributed by | Asmik Ace |
Release date |
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Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
| Budget | ¥3 million ($25,000) |
| Box office | ¥3.12 billion (Japan) $31.2 million (worldwide) |
One Cut of the Dead (カメラを止めるな!, Kamera o Tomeru na!; transl. Don't Stop the Camera!) is a 2017 Japanese independent satirical zombie comedy film written and directed by Shin'ichirō Ueda. Based primarily on the stage play Ghost in the Box! by Ryoichi Wada, it follows a film crew who are tasked with making One Cut of the Dead, a zombie horror film for live television that must be shot in a single take; the film initially depicts One Cut of the Dead as a film within the film, then goes back in time to show the origins and production of the project from the perspective of the cast and crew.
Made with a low budget of ¥3 million ($25,000) with a cast of unknown actors, One Cut of the Dead opened in a small cinema in Japan for a six-day run. Following its international success upon its screening at the Udine Film Festival, the film received a wide release, including a re-release in Japan.
The film grossed $27.93 million (¥3.12 billion) in Japan and $30.5 million worldwide, making box office history by earning over 1,000 times its budget. It received acclaim from critics, who praised its originality, writing, and humor. It was ranked by Rotten Tomatoes as the best found footage film ever made, and is the only found footage film to have received a rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes as of July 2025.